Advanced Composition
Course Syllabus
Spring 2009
Credit Hours: 3
Thursday: 7:00 p.m. \u2013 9:45 p.m.

Instructor: Ms. Amy Boltrushek
E-mail:amy.boltrushek@utdallas.edu or ABoltrushek@dcccd.edu
Office: n/a @ UTD or M216 @ Richland College
Office Phone: n/a @ UTD or 972-671-6741 @ Richland College
Office Hours: By appointment only

According to William James, \u201cIn any project the important factor is [our] belief. Without belief,
there can be no successful outcome\u201d. Therefore, in asserting a belief, we must possess a thought,
but not just any random or pre-contrived thought will suffice. Instead, our mental constructs must
be derived autonomously by way of our abilities to think critically, analyze objectively, and
interpret openly. As for this course, our literary expedition entails an exploration of the
intertextuality of written, spoken, and visual literature. In this journey, we will discover the
various contexts that influence the directions that our literary investigations follow, and by doing
so, we will have unearthed our natural reserve to interpret texts successfully.

2 Spiral Notebooks (8 \u00bd\u201d by 11\u201d): One spiral will be used for in-class activities,
including prewriting exercises and class notes. The second spiral will be used for non-
directed free writing exercises, and this journal will be collected at various times (without
warning) throughout the semester.

To help you meet the course objectives, this class includes regular -- almost daily -- writing
assignments both in and out of class, group activities, and exercises. This means that being in
class and on time is required to complete the course. Therefore, please, do not be late for class;
when you are late, you interrupt the class, distract your classmates and me, and miss assignments
(note: If you arrive after a quiz has been given, homework collected, etc. there will be no make-

Each class period opens the opportunity for knowledge and intellectual growth; therefore, it is imperative that you come to class each day, so you will not miss out on vital information or slip behind in your coursework.Thus, students who miss more than two weeks of class (i.e. two

However, if you are absent, please email me and let me know. If you have
\u201cdocumentation\u201d for your absence, please bring it with you when you return to class.
One documented absence is excused.

Remember, withdrawing from a course requires paperwork that you must initiate and complete; I
cannot do it for you. Begin the withdrawal procedure in the Arts and Humanities Advising
Office (Or, if you are not an A & H major, then see the Advising Office of your discipline).
If you decide not to complete the course, you must withdraw from it by the withdrawal deadlines
( This information is directly from the academic calendar that is published on the UTD website:

Last day to drop a class without a \u201cW\u201d................. Wed., Jan. 28
\u201cSignature required\u201d period to withdraw from UG courses.................. Thurs., January 29 \u2013
Mon., March 16
Undergraduate course WP/WF withdrawal period begins............................... Monday, Feb. 9
Last day to withdraw from an undergraduate course with WP/WF........... Monday, March 16

During our sixteen weeks together, students will write six paper (four reader responses and two
essays), all of which will be stapled and written in MLA Format (i.e. Typed in Times New
Roman, size 12 Font, double-spaced with a one inch margin) and contain correct MLA
documentation with regard to primary (i.e. the text being analyzed) and secondary sources (i.e.
journal articles, books, etc), or they will not be accepted.

Essays will be research in nature and will be a minimum of six to eight full pages (i.e. five and a
half pages will not count as six pages and this does not include the Works Cited page) and will
include five to eight sources (no internet sources will be allowed).